Tuesday
Erick Rudolph Finishes 21st after Incident at Thompson International Speedway
Press Release“Continues to hold seventh spot in point standings”
Rudolph started strong at TIS, posting the fourth-fastest time of 18.828 seconds (119.503 mph) in practice. The 18-year-old drove his No. 98 Mohawk N.E. / Original Pizza Logs Chevrolet to the 17th starting spot with a lap of 19.029 seconds (118.241 mph).
When the Budweiser King of Beers 150 started, Rudolph hoped to quickly make his way through the field when he took the green flag from the 17th position.
He survived a chain reaction incident in turn two on the second lap and continued to march to the front. A lap 41 caution allowed Rudolph to drive down pit road to the attention of his HBR crew. The No. 98 Mohawk N.E./Original Pizza Logs crew added fuel, changed tires and made an adjustment to tighten up the car.
By the halfway point, Rudolph worked his way to the 12th position. When the third caution flag waved, the HBR team elected to stay out and gain track position. Racing resumed on lap 101, and Rudolph held the fifth-place position.
Although Rudolph fought hard for the fifth spot, fresh tires had the advantage and by lap 137, Rudolph fell out of the top-10. Looking for a solid finish to continue his march up the point standings, Rudolph hit his marks and tried race back into the top-10.
A top-10 finish was not in the cards, however, as the 18-year-old was spun into the wall on lap 149, just one lap before the scheduled last lap. The contact to the wall caused damage to the right front of his No. 98 Mohawk N.E./Original Pizza Logs Chevrolet. With just a few laps left in the race, Rudolph pulled his Chevrolet into the garage to assess the damage.
The field had a green-white-checkered finish and tried to catch the dominant Ted Christopher. Christopher held them off for the win, while fellow HBR development driver Bobby Santos III finished third. Rudolph finished the race seven laps down in the 21st position.
Rudolph continues to hold the seventh spot in the NWMT point standings, 112 points behind sixth place.
“We struggled all day,” explained Rudolph. “I was never really happy with the car. We are going to try some different things for the next race at Thompson. I have mixed feelings about Thompson. We have had some success there, but we also have gone there and struggled. It is one of those tracks that we never know what to expect when we go there. Hopefully, we will finish better next time.”
Rudolph and the No. 98 Mohawk N.E. / Original Pizza Logs team will head to Bristol Motor Speedway August 18 for the UNOH Perfect Storm 150. On-track activity begins at 8 a.m. EST. The UNOH Perfect Storm 150 will start at 6 p.m. EST, just before the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at 8 p.m. EST.
About Heinke-Baldwin Racing
Heinke-Baldwin Racing was formed in 2009 by H&H Motorsports owner Al Heinke and Tommy Baldwin Racing owner Tommy Baldwin. Both Baldwin and Heinke grew up racing in New England and saw an opportunity to work together to help young drivers pursue their dreams to race.
In 2010, the team’s freshman year, HBR is fielding the No. 98H for driver Jimmy Phelps in the Super DIRTcar Series, with sponsorship from Wave Energy Drink. They will also be fielding the No. 98 for driver Erick Rudolph in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, with additional sponsorship from Pizza Logs, Brigham Concrete and PrimeTyme Motorsports.
- Heinke-Baldwin Racing Press Release
Article Tags: Al Heinke, Bobby Santos III, Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, Budweiser King of Beers 150, Erick Rudolph, Heinke / Baldwin Racing, Jimmy Phelps, NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, No. 98 Mohawk N.E. / Original Pizza Logs Chevrolet, NWMT, Ted Christopher, Thompson International Speedway, TIS, Tommy Baldwin, UNOH Perfect Storm 150
